


first meeting

by WattStalf



Series: Erika's Cosplay Club [1]
Category: Durarara!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Friendship, Gen, everyone has fun cosplaying, kind of, mentions of polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-20
Updated: 2016-10-20
Packaged: 2018-08-23 16:37:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8334718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WattStalf/pseuds/WattStalf
Summary: Erika invites Emilia to cosplay with her, and the two of them become fast friends.





	

**Author's Note:**

> To counteract all the smut I write for this fandom, and to satisfy my own urges to see my favorite characters interact, and to just have stupid amounts of fun, I present to you, this series where Erika gets people to cosplay with her. With polyamory mentioned because I guess it's that kinda party. In this story, she mentions that she and the rest of the Van Squad are kind of dating, and Emilia hints at their being someone else involved in her relationship.  
> believe it or not, Erika's relationship is going to turn into an OT7 before this series is over i stg im out of control

Erika's had it in her mind since the first time she met Emilia that the woman would be absolutely perfect for cosplay. Her blonde hair and western features and positively _killer_ body make her a good fit for lots of costumes and several characters, and she finds herself unable to stop imagining things. Ever since she managed to convince Anri to come along, Erika has been looking to recruit more of her friends, and she's still waiting on that call from Kasane.

In the meantime, she decides that she's going to invite Emilia along to a meeting of her group, and she gets Kadota to get her in touch with Shinra so that she can get in touch with his stepmother.

“Hey, Mrs. Kishitani!” she says, when the other woman answers the phone. “I don't know if you remember me or not, but Shinra should have told you I'd be calling. I was at that party a while back, and I'm friends with Togusa and Yumasaki.”

“A call was expected,” replies the woman on the phone. “You are someone remembered well, and what pleasure is owed?”

It is only now that Erika remembers the trouble that Emilia has with Japanese, and she decides that things might be easier for the both of them if she speaks English. She knows enough to make conversation, and to be able to keep up when watching American dubs to see if they stayed true to the essence of the anime.

“We can talk like this, if you want,” she says.

“Oh!” Emilia seems surprised at first, but adjusts easily. “That would be better, I think! I'm sorry, I've never been able to get the hang of the language!”

“Don't worry about, Mrs. Kishitani. I called cos I wanted to ask you about something I do with some of my other friends.”

“Please, call me Emilia!” she replies. “What is it you wanted to ask me?”

“Have you ever cosplayed before?”

“Um...I haven't, but I'm not really sure...”

Erika takes a moment to explain the ins and outs to her; Emilia has a basic idea of what it entails, but Erika helps her get a good understanding of it. By the end of the conversation, the other woman has gotten rather excited, and asks, “Are you sure you really want  _me_ to come along?”

“Of course! You'd be perfect for it! Not all of my friends speak English as well as I do, but I can translate if anything gets too confusing. We've got a meeting on Tuesday night, if you're not busy.”

They make plans to meet up, and Erika is delighted to have potentially found a new recruit.

~X~

When she's face to face with Emilia, she remembers once again that the woman is actually younger than her, despite her status as Shinra's stepmother and despite her career and despite her mostly mature demeanor. It's weird to think about the fact that there's someone like that, already married and high up in a company- though Erika has no idea what they actually do there, Walker had gone on and on about the things her husband had told him about, so she knows it has to be something cool- all while being a year or so younger than herself.

Emilia greets her with a bright smile, saying, “Thank you again for inviting me,” and the two of them head off together.

When they arrive, a few girls are already there, including Azusa, and Erika introduces them. Azusa knows enough in English to make conversation about some topics, but for the most part, they have to keep their conversation strictly related to costumes. Which is perfectly fine, considering they're quick to show Emilia their extensive collection and they begin to sort through it, looking for something that will fit her.

She tries on every costume they show her with enthusiasm, and even asks them to take pictures on her cellphone while she models for the club, and Erika can already tell that she's going to fall in love with this. When things start to wind down and it's time to go home, she invites Emilia and Azusa to a cafe, where they relax and talk about all the fun that they had.

“Do you think you're going to want to come back sometime?” asks Azusa.

Emilia nods and Erika says, “We're going to have to show you some characters! You looked great in the basic costumes tonight, but if we could find you characters you liked, then you could do group photo shoots with us and stuff! I have some books you could borrow, if you want. That is...do you have a hard time reading in Japanese too?”

“Oh, no, I can read it just fine,” she replies. “It's just, when I try to put my own thoughts into words, it comes out sounding wrong, I think. At least, that's what people usually tell me. My husband says he can always understand me just fine!”

“Hey, hey, speaking of,” says Erika, with a sly grin, “was that why you wanted us to take so many pictures? Are you gonna surprise him with all those sexy photos or something?”

“Erika!” Azusa bursts out laughing, having understood the gist of what was being said. Their conversation transitions into a mix of Japanese and English, with Erika acting as an interpreter when the need arises, as they start to talk about relationships.

Once she's on the topic of Shingen, Emilia says, “You're seeing Yumasaki, aren't you? Oh! Wouldn't it be so exciting if we went out together? Kids still do that, don't they?” She asks this as if she isn't in their age group, which makes it even harder to think of her as younger.

“You want us to...go out together?” asks Erika. “That's kinda complicated...”

“Does Azusa have a boyfriend too? They could come! I only mentioned it because Yumasaki likes my husband so much, but anyone would be welcome.”

Erika translates all of this for Azusa, who covers her mouth with her fist as she turns aside and laughs. Still, Emilia picks up on that and asks what's funny.

“Well, see...me and Yumachi are _kinda_ together, yeah, but we're also...I mean...” She isn't sure how to explain it to Emilia because she's never even been sure how to explain it to herself. The relationship was kind of her idea to start with, and she's always helped move things along in her friend group, but that doesn't make it easier for her to understand where exactly they stand at any given moment of time.

“Just tell her you're dating all three of them!” her friend says with a snort, but there is no jealousy in her voice, even as she continues. “Lucky duck, getting to date two guys _plus_ Kyohei...what I wouldn't give to be in your shoes, _at least_ where he's concerned!”

Her friend's crush on Kadota has never been much of a secret, but lately, things have gotten more convoluted in that department, and the fact that Azusa has never been bitter about Erika's relationship only adds to that. But right now, she's not thinking about what could be; she's explaining things to Emilia.

“I'm not just with him,” she finally says, turning her attention back to the original conversation. “You remember Dotachin and Togusachi, right? I'm kind of...we're all four...”

“ _Oh_!” Emilia says, her eyes lighting up. “Oh, that's so modern! And how lucky! You know, my husband and I aren't entirely exclusive, so I'm sure we could work something out someday.”

“No way, really? Who's the lucky third? Or fourth? How big does it go?” Erika asks, and Azusa watches their exchange in confusion, only picking up on a few words here and there.

“It's just a third right now, but we're waiting until things are more official before we talk about it with anyone. I hope you don't mind that I'm keeping a secret,” she says with a playful smile.

“Well, I bet you and the mister get up to all sorts of kinky stuff even without a third!”

From that, Azusa is able to pick up enough words to know her friend deserves a scolding, which she delivers, and then the three of them change the subject again, discussing a party that the club is planning on having in the future. It's still a ways off, but Emilia is invited nonetheless, and before she goes home, they stop by Erika's home so that she can lend her books.

“That way you can start thinking about what you might wanna do for the party!” They say their goodbyes, promising to meet up together in a week, and Erika is glad that her latest attempt at recruitment was a success. Now she just has to try to get Anri to come back again, and hopefully Kasane will call her soon enough.

 


End file.
